Business culture hinders remote working

 

Bosses don’t trust employees to work.

A recent survey suggests that business culture is the main obstacle to reaping the benefits offered by remote working.

This is despite the fact that 73 percent of workers believe they are more productive when working from home, according to the study by vendor Lumison.

About 65 percent of the 1,000 individuals polled added that they also work longer hours when working remotely, though half of those surveyed said their bosses remain sceptical about whether or not they were actually working.

Even though only 33 percent of the respondents said their employers have a defined remote working policy, 65 percent of the respondents said they have all the technology they need to work effectively from home.

And 27 percent of those polled said their managers "value being present over being productive".

“Many businesses are stuck in a Dickensian mindset of ‘presenteeism’,” said Lumison chief executive Aydin Kurt-Elli.

itweek.co.uk @ 2010 Incisive Media


Business culture hinders remote working
"I for one would agree that I would better work from home, about to work more efficient without the noise and distraction that often one encounters in a busy office. Digger11-I agree with ..."
By thor
 
 
 
Comments: 5
Ace
Feb 22, 2010 10:14 AM
Did anyone survey the managers/bosses? The reason they are 'sceptical', is because workers tend to be less productive when working at home (despite what they think), and they are unavailable for impromptu meetings and peer review - which have a big effect on quality, business agility and team building. This doesn't go for all people, as there are certainly those individuals who are able to work alone very effectively. But, in general, I don't see this to be the case.
Digger11
Feb 22, 2010 12:21 PM
Telstra employees don't do any effective work when at work anyway - so why would bosses expect them to increase output when they stay at home in their Pink Trackie Dacks and Moccy's ??

Don't blame the bosses - it is the workers (loose term) who are clearly at fault.
Daveh
Feb 22, 2010 3:22 PM
Have to agree with Ace on this one.

Whats clearly missing are the definitions surrounding the terms. What is productivity in this instance? How did they measure the difference between work from home vs on site.

How was the survey conducted. I would find it hard to believe that anyone who works from home admitting honestly that it lowers their efficiency.

While it is nice to work from home on occasion for most people the impetus behind WFH is to allow them to perform other tasks at the same time.

Want the easy example. Imagine calling a help desk, where all the staff worked from home.
BobbyDolphin
Feb 22, 2010 3:30 PM
Digger11, where is there any reference to Telstra in the article? Bit of envy that they trust their employees and you don't trust your employees?
thor
Feb 22, 2010 3:46 PM
I for one would agree that I would better work from home, about to work more efficient without the noise and distraction that often one encounters in a busy office.

Digger11-I agree with BobbyDolphin, I dont see any reference to telstra in this, this was completely random, even for you.
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